8/10/06 – As of today, the route to Little Saganaga Lake through Mora Lake has been reopened. This was the only route that is commonly used by Sawbill canoeists that was closed due to the Cavity Lake fire. The fire is now 95% contained and is not expected to cause any further trouble. Below is the official notification about open and closed routes from the Forest Service:
Open Lakes/canoe routes:
The following lakes/routes are open for paddling & overnight camping. Not all campsites on these lakes are open. Closed sites will be posted as a closed campsite. There is no camping on Jap and Jasper.
– Alpine to Jasper (no camping), Jasper to Kingfisher, Kingfisher to Ogishkemuncie.
– Flying, Fay, Bingshick, Glee, Elusion, and Glossy.
– J A Paulson (JAP) is open for paddling through, both campsites are closed.
– Crooked, Tarry, Mora, Little Sag, Rattle, Gabimichigami, Agamok, Mueller and Ogishkemuncie.
Closed Lakes:
The following lakes are closed for the remainder of the season:
– Fern, French, Powell, West Fern, Peter, Virgin, Howard, Elm and Warclub.
Kekekabic Trail: The Kek Trail is currently closed due to the Level 2 Fire Restriction. When the restriction is lifted, the Kekekabic Trail will be closed for the remainder of the season from the Gunflint Trail traveling west to Strup Lake (near Kekekabic Lake).

8/9/06 – Ron Holtman and his friends have been customers here at Sawbill for many years. They sent along these great pictures from their trip last week.

A gorgeous sunset is the reward at the end of a long paddle.

The Holtman party relaxing at their campsite.

8/5/06 – The temperatures have finally cooled off a bit and we’re experiencing beautiful 80 degree days and cool evenings. We’ve even had a little rain during the past week which has put an end to the spread of wildfires.
Yesterday, Carl’s band, Freakers with Speakers, played in Grand Marais for the annual Fishermen’s Picnic and tonight Bill’s band, The Splinters, will take center stage. The crew is heading down for the party! -Corey

Homer models his new rainsuit.

Here we are in a 5 person frisbee circle with Carl in the middle.

Freakers with Speakers on the main stage at the Fishermen’s Picnic in Grand Marais.

8/2/06 – The sun rose with good news today as it brought both pleasant temperatures and increased containment of the Cavity Lake fire. The weather today was in the 70’s with a refreshing breeze from across the lake. The Cavity lake fire was also upgraded to 85% contained – although the limited fire ban remains in effect. This truly was a day sent on good intentions.

A rainbow that appeared above the store captured the eyes of many.

This friendly Dragonfly was nice enough to sit on my finger and eat Mosquitoes, which are near to being completely gone.

Today marks Homer’s sixth birthday. Homer is seen with his mother Daisy Mae, sister Cedar, and personal friend Izzy. Happy Birthday Homer!

7/31/06 – Today brought some much needed relief from the busiest weekend so far this year. All the crew say “thank you” to all the great people that we get to meet here at Sawbill. The heat index topped 100 degrees today, but the heat is nothing that a quick dip into water cannot solve. The heat has now been absorbed into a large and spectacular thunderstorm, with thunder claps overhead and a soothing rhythm pounding on the roof. The drenching rain is welcome to reduce the fire danger and increase the water levels. -Johnny

Cindy recognized this adventurer in front of the store. He is Scott Sorenson of Traverse City, MI. Since June 27, Scott has circumnavigated both the Quetico and the BWCA, a total trip of 535 miles. Cindy and Scott were reuinted for this picture after having met two weeks earlier on the Granite river while Cindy was on her own trip. Scott says “Hi to Dorothy.”

Some of the interesting clouds that could be seen over Sawbill.

Rain began to pour only moments after the picture above was taken.

Frog’s eye view of Sawbill during the midday rain storm.

7/29/06 – Here at Sawbill our busy week looks as if it will only get busier. It seems that the customers have brought the heat with them. The temperature has been forcast for the 90’s all week. With the heat pushing down on the crew’s backs, we have searched for new forms of amusment, often found in our two lovable dogs Izzy and Homer. -Johnny

This picture of Matt at the Christmas party inspired Izzy

We all thought that Izzy looked quite the part in her new Matthawk

Izzy seen posing with her new friends, Brittany & Jakob Weninger and their dog Lizzy. (Homer seen sneaking into the picture)

7/27/06 – It has been a beautiful summer for good weather and today was as good as they come. It was in the middle 80s with just a light breeze. The bugs are just about gone for the summer – just a few mosquitoes at dawn and dusk.
The big Cavity Lake fire was never threatening us, but it has gone into hibernation during this mild, calm weather. The Forest Service is calling the fire 45% contained today and expect that number to go up over the next few days. They have half a dozen or more aircraft working the fire and nearly 500 people on the ground. The fire is almost exclusively confined to the area that blew down heavily in the July 4th, 1999 storm. A few entry points on the Gunflint Trail are closed or restricted, but the vast majority of the BWCA Wilderness is open.
As a result of the fire, there is an open fire ban in about half the BWCA Wilderness.

Here is a map of the area where open fires are currently banned. Stove are, of course, allowed everywhere. The Sawbill Campground still allows open fires.

7/26/06 – This picture was sent along by long-time Sawbill campers, Al and Arlene Olson. They spotted this pair in the pond along the Sawbill Trail about seven miles south of here. The same pair was in the pond this morning, getting photograghed by each passing car load of canoeists.

Day trippers and those who have gone through the Kelso loop recently have seen a mama moose and her baby. Even during mid day they can been seen out in the water chewing on some weeds and other plants.

7/26/06 – Merry Christmas! No, we dont have snow up here yet, but we the crew did celebrate Christmas in July. Our festive dinner had the X-mas theme, from people dressing up in costumes, decorations, and singing Christmas carols. We also participated in the tradition of secret santa. Many of the presents were very creative while some were quite random. Just as much fun either way. I got a fishing pole made by Johnny. He put both sweat and blood into making it (two stiches following a minor hand saw accident). Dinner was stuffed chicken, rolls, potatoes, cranberry, salad, gravy, the whole nine yards!

The Sawbill Crew of 2006 celebrating Christmas in July.
I am leaving on a trip for a couple of days. I am going north to Cherokee and will have stories and adventures to share on my return. Also I will have a detailed fishing report of those lakes up there.
Over and Out
Carl Geving

7/24/06 – Sunday evening held a bit of excitement for the BWCAW. There was a large storm which lingered over us for quite some time. It was a storm, which had a lot of potential. However, this potential could have been either really good or really bad. This storm–let’s call it Albert (since hurricanes can be named, why not really big land storms?)–alright, so Albert had something I personally had never seen in a storm before. Usually, shortly after each flash of lighting there is a boom of thunder. Albert did not behave this way. He would have multiple strikes before any sound of thunder, as many as 30 large flashes before the thunder. It looked like there were many close calls. Crew members Corey, Johnny, Liz, Clare and myself went to the landing to watch the storm around midnight. At that time, Albert was hanging around Alton and Grace Lakes, but it was moving toward us. We watched the lighting for about fifteen minutes. During that time, there were several large strikes in which you could see not only what color shirt the person standing next to you was wearing, but also any dirt or smudge on it. After those strikes, there was the temporary blindness similar to the flash of a camera only feet from your face. With all the strikes, thankfully Albert did not cause any more fires than what we have already. Also, later that night he delivered a much needed downpour. Thank you, Albert!
Quick fire update (Cavity Lake Fire):
Size: 31,830 acres (aprox 50 square miles)
It has been burning for 10 days; it started July 14th.
Contained: 35%, and that number continues to rise rapidly
Total Personnel: 460
Bear update:
It is ALWAYS a good idea to hang your food in a tree. There are several ways to hang a pack so that it is unreachable by bears. If there isn’t a good spot right there at the camp ground, keep hiking back there. When picking out a campsite, good pack-hanging trees are something that I look for before taking the site. I would rather have a good bear tree than a good tent spot. Secondly, bears have been hanging around the end of portages and swiping food when people go back for a second trip. Basically, just keep someone with the pack at all times and have it in sight. If a bear does come a little too close, shoo it away firmly–you’ll both be better off. As Bill reminded me, bears want nothing to do with people, they just want food. There is more danger in a stranger’s dog than a black bear.
Carl Hansen, Pat Nash, and Homer got back from their adventure to Carl Lake. Homer is glad to be home, and happy to see Cindy and Izzy. Both Carl and Pat decided to pack light this trip–neither of them brought any rain gear…which turned out to be a mistake. Lots of rain and wetness, but overall it was a good trip.
I shall have another fishing report tomorrow after I get out there and try my luck again.
(I bought a brand new lure in town and will have to give a report.)
Over and Out
Carl Geving